Protecting Your Heart from Cardiovascular Disease

Protecting Your Heart from Cardiovascular Disease

In the United States, heart disease is the main reason for death in women and men of most ethnic and racial groups. That translates to about 1 person dying every 36 seconds from heart disease. 

If you’re someone who is looking to avoid being this statistic, you might be curious about tips on protecting your heart. While heart problems can tough to deal with, there’s hope. 

This article will go over different tips and actions that you can follow to have the most healthy heart that you can. Read on to explore these tips and actions in order to ease your mind knowing that you’re protecting your heart. 

Contents

1. Eat Healthily

Heart disease prevention includes eating healthy with plenty of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Add fish, lean animal proteins, and plant-based proteins to your diet. 

Limit processed meats, sweetened drinks, and refined carbohydrates. Check the nutrition facts of items you buy, and avoid those with large amounts of sodium, saturated fats, and added sugars. 

2. Manage Symptoms

Speak with your doctor about the various tests for heart failure. If you have diabetes, high blood sugar, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or another condition, they put you at an increased risk for heart problems. Make the lifestyle changes that your doctor recommends for you. 

3. Maintain a Healthy Weight

Avoid being overweight since that can increase your chances of heart disease. This is due to obesity increasing your risk of other conditions such as high cholesterol, blood pressure, and diabetes. 

4. Quit Smoking

In order to maintain a healthy heart, quit smoking. This is because cigarette smoking can contribute to higher blood pressure. Higher blood pressure can lead to a stroke or heart attack. If you smoke, quit. 

5. Exercise

Exercise is a great way to control your weight and keep your heart healthy. If you don’t exercise, you might need to work your way up to exercising more. 

You’ll want to do a variety of vigorous and moderate aerobic exercises along with strength training. Add movement throughout your day such as housekeeping, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, walking the dog, etc. 

6. Reduce Stress

Stress can be managed in unhealthy ways such as smoking, drinking, or overeating. Instead, choose alternative ways to manage stress such as meditation or relaxation exercises. 

7. Limit Alcohol

If you drink alcohol, limit how much you drink. For women, drink one glass a day, and for men, 2 a day. 

Setting Goals

In order to keep up with your progress, it’s important to set goals. Monitor and track your progress to see how you’re doing with reaching your goals. 

You can keep track of how much weight you lose, or how often you exercise through your smartphone, computer, etc. Ensure that you have the motivation to keep going with your workouts, such as having an end goal. 

Protecting Your Heart From Cardiovascular Disease

Now that you’ve explored different methods for protecting your heart, you should have a better idea of how to ensure that you have the healthiest heart possible. Would you like to read more lifestyle content? For all of your lifestyle needs, check out our other articles today. 

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